Aaron Rodgers’ future with the Jets is up to Aaron Glenn and Darren Mougey, Woody Johnson says

The New York Jets are starting a new era with head coach Aaron Glenn and general manager Darren Mougey. But the fate of a major element of the previous era still hangs in the balance: what to do about quarterback Aaron Rodgers?

Rodgers, a four-time NFL MVP, showed flashes of brilliance throughout the 2024 season, but was largely ineffective as the Jets went 5-12, extending the longest playoff drought in American professional sports. Rodgers’ performance leaves major questions about whether the 41-year-old quarterback will be returning to the Jets next season.

After an introductory news conference Monday, Jets owner Woody Johnson told reporters that he would be leaving the decisions about Rodgers up to Glenn and Mougey. Johnson said that he would “absolutely” welcome Rodgers back if his head coach-GM team chooses to bring him back, but would not voice his personal opinion on the quarterback.

As for where Glenn and Mougey stand on Rodgers, it may take some time for them to come to a consensus. During the news conference, Glenn was blunt about the situation in his opening statement.

“Aaron Rodgers will be talked about,” Glenn said, saying that he and Mougey had already texted Rodgers to speak with him about the future. “As we continue to look at the roster, we’ll make decisions accordingly.”

Mougey said during the Q&A that he and Glenn planned to sit down and go over the roster as early as that night. When asked again about Rodgers, Glenn said that they would not rush the process of going through the roster.

“I can’t tell you how long that process would be, but the thing is, we’re gonna make sure we get the right answer,” Glenn said.

After the news conference, when asked about Rodgers again, Mougey told reporters that they didn’t have a timeline yet, but that he held a lot of respect for Rodgers personally, calling him “one of the greatest players of all time.”

“I got the most respect for Aaron Rodgers and what he’s done in this league as a player,” Mougey said, adding that, “Aaron has his process in the offseason that he goes through, we have ours.”

Even with these answers, Glenn and Mougey repeatedly fielded questions about Rodgers throughout the press conference. “We are still in evaluation mode,” Glenn told reporters after being asked about the quarterback yet again. “So if anyone else gonna ask that, you will get the same answer. So don’t waste your time.”

After head coach Robert Saleh and general manager Joe Douglas were both fired, Rodgers said earlier this month that he knew much of his fate would come down to whoever took over those positions. On “The Pat McAfee Show” on Jan. 16, Rodgers said that he was going to “take some time” to think about his future, including contemplating retirement.

“I think everybody understands that it’s going to come down to [the] GM and coach and myself, and whether we all want to do a dance together — or if it’s not in the cards,” Rodgers said.